Who was Zanoah in the bible?

Zanoah (Zanowach) is a biblical place-name; a lexicon gloss identifies it as the name of two places in Palestine. In Scripture, Zanoah appears both as a town listed within Judah’s inheritance and as a locality whose inhabitants helped repair Jerusalem’s wall.

Zanoah in Scripture

“His wife the Jewess bore Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah. These are the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered took.” (1 Chronicles 4:18)

In a genealogical notice, “Jekuthiel” is described as “the father of Zanoah,” placing the name within a family register. The wording “father of” connects Zanoah to a lineage statement, without further detail here about the location or nature of Zanoah beyond its appearance in this formula.

Zanoah is next encountered in the description of Judah’s allotted territory. The chapter begins by framing the subject as Judah’s inheritance and its borders:

“The lot for the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families was to the border of Edom, even to the wilderness of Zin southward, at the uttermost part of the south.” (Joshua 15:1)

Joshua 15 then traces Judah’s borders and, after stating the inheritance theme explicitly—

“This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families.” (Joshua 15:20)

—it provides long lists of cities grouped by region within Judah’s territory. In the “lowland,” Zanoah appears among named towns:

“In the lowland, Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah, Zanoah, En Gannim, Tappuah, Enam,” (Joshua 15:33–34)

Later in the same chapter, within the list for “the hill country,” Zanoah is named again among other towns:

“In the hill country, Shamir, Jattir, Socoh, … Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Jutah, Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,” (Joshua 15:48, 55–56)

The repeated inclusion of “Zanoah” in distinct regional lists inside Judah’s inheritance aligns with the lexicon gloss that the name refers to two places. Within the chapter’s broader narrative movement, the text shifts from defining Judah’s borders (Joshua 15:1–12), to narrating a specific allotment to Caleb (Joshua 15:13–19), and then to cataloging Judah’s cities by area (Joshua 15:20–62). Zanoah belongs to that final cataloging phase, which enumerates towns as part of Judah’s settled geography.

Zanoah appears again in connection with repair work on Jerusalem’s wall, where both an individual and a group are named for their work on a specific gate and a stretch of wall:

“Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the valley gate. They built it, and set up its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and one thousand cubits of the wall to the dung gate.” (Nehemiah 3:13)

Here, “the inhabitants of Zanoah” are depicted as participating alongside Hanun in repairing “the valley gate,” completing construction details (“doors,” “bolts,” and “bars”) and repairing an extended section described as “one thousand cubits of the wall to the dung gate.” Zanoah thus functions as a community identifier for a workforce engaged in rebuilding.

Finally, Zanoah is listed among places associated with settlement and encampment:

“Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and its fields, and Azekah and its towns. So they encamped from Beersheba to the valley of Hinnom.” (Nehemiah 11:30)

This notice places Zanoah among towns and their associated rural areas (“villages,” “fields,” “towns”) and concludes with a summary statement about the extent of encampment, “from Beersheba to the valley of Hinnom.”

Multiple Uses of Zanoah

The lexicon gloss identifies “Zanoah” as “the name of two places in Palestine,” and the biblical data reflects multiple uses of the name. In Joshua 15, “Zanoah” appears twice in city lists—once “In the lowland” (Joshua 15:33–34) and again “In the hill country” (Joshua 15:48, 55–56)—which fits the sense of two distinct locations sharing the same name. In Nehemiah, “the inhabitants of Zanoah” (Nehemiah 3:13) and the later listing “Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages” (Nehemiah 11:30) treat Zanoah as a populated place with an identifiable community and associated settlements.

Name and Meaning

The name is written in Hebrew as זָנוֹחַ, transliterated Zanowach, and pronounced zaw-no’-akh. Strong’s derivation connects it to H2186 and gives the sense “rejected,” drawing from the Hebrew component zanach (זָנַח), meaning “reject, forsake, fail.”

Observation

Across its occurrences, Zanoah is consistently tied to place: it is counted among Judah’s towns (Joshua 15:33–34; 15:55–56), named as a community capable of coordinated work (“the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the valley gate,” Nehemiah 3:13), and included among settled sites with surrounding rural life (“Zanoah… and their villages,” Nehemiah 11:30).

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the name Zanoah mean?

Zanoah means “rejected.”

How many times does Zanoah appear in the Bible?

Zanoah appears 5 times.

Who was Zanoah in the Bible?

Zanoah is the name of two places in Palestine. In 1 Chronicles 4:18, it is mentioned in a genealogy as “Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.”

What happened involving Zanoah in Nehemiah?

Nehemiah 3:13 says “Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the valley gate,” including building it and setting up its doors, bolts, and bars.

Explore Further

If you found this page about Zanoah interesting and would like to discover more about other biblical characters, explore our comprehensive Encyclopedia of Biblical Characters. For those looking to delve deeper into the Greek origins of these names and terms, our Greek Lexicon is an invaluable resource.

Sources: Name and occurrence data from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and STEPBible reference data (CC BY). Scripture quotations from the World English Bible (public domain).